"My lord, you cannot say that. Given the eldest young lady's temperament, she likely won't agree.
The second young lady marrying in her place was undoubtedly the best solution at the time.
It's a pity His Majesty is as rumored, not fond of women, but there are advantages to not being fond of women.
For so many years, there has been no other woman by His Majesty's side besides the second young lady.
To put it plainly, His Majesty views a woman as beautiful as the second young lady as if she were invisible, and he would surely treat other women with equal indifference.
From another perspective, the position of Empress can only belong to the second young lady.
If the second young lady were to bear the imperial heir, wouldn't that directly make her the future Crown Prince?"
"That's true, but Yu Yan simply cannot handle that brat Xia Chengjin.
Never mind, I'll have a good talk with Yu Yan when I see her.
What worries me the most right now is that without the constraints of forces like the King of Wucheng and the Fourth Prince, upon the new Emperor's ascension, aside from promoting his confidantes, he will have to boldly reform the court.
As Prime Minister, and his nominal father-in-law, using me as an example to warn others would be enough to silence the public's gossip."
"My lord, His Majesty is your son-in-law, surely he wouldn't go that far, would he?"
"Hmph, the royal family is all cold-hearted and ruthless. Is there anything they wouldn't do?
However, if that brat Xia Chengjin behaves himself, it would be fine. But if he truly targets me, I will not sit idly by.
You will then instruct our people to tread carefully starting tomorrow. Do not do anything foolish that would hand leverage to the new Emperor.
Also, I will write a letter shortly, and you will dispatch someone to deliver it outside the pass as soon as possible."
"Outside the pass?"
The old butler's eyes widened in surprise, "My lord, could it be that you..."
"Since there is no external threat, I will create one for him!
Let's see if he still has the leisure to make an example of me.
By the way, besides Feng Qingchen, have there been any other official appointments recently?"
"Yes, but they are mostly lateral transfers. However, besides Feng Qingchen, there is one official who has been promoted two ranks."
"Who?"
"The acting Prefect of Fengtian Prefecture, Lin Jingxing. This man, a scholar who placed third in the imperial examination, has risen from a mere ninth-rank county magistrate to a fourth-rank prefect in just a few months.
His momentum is so strong that he is almost on par with Feng Qingchen."
"What is this person's background?"
"Reporting to my lord, this man is a disciple of the Minister of Justice, Xu Changling. And Xu Changling is a fellow disciple of the new Emperor. Therefore, he should also be one of the new Emperor's confidantes.
This person was involved in the disaster relief silver and the Xiangtang Guan case. And the culprit who crippled the Second Prince is his wife."
Shangguan Hong frowned upon hearing this and said:
"All these incidents, if they are mere coincidences, it means this person possesses great fortune.
If they are not coincidences, it means this person is highly capable.
But in either case, this person must not be allowed to live!"
With years of unspoken understanding, the old butler immediately cupped his hands and said:
"My lord, rest assured, I know what needs to be done."
"Good. Send more assassins to handle it cleanly. It would be best to disguise it as an attack by bandits during their journey."
"Yes!"
After the old butler responded, he did not leave immediately but hesitantly asked:
"My lord, what about the morning court tomorrow..."
"Hmph, to have Feng Qingchen stand alongside me is sheer delusion!"
On the other side.
Feng Qingchen, whom Shangguan Hong considered a thorn in his side, was currently writing furiously amidst a small mountain of memorials, cursing impatiently as he wrote:
"To hell with this damn Prime Minister!
Whoever wants it can have it!
The acting Prime Minister has already worked this official to the bone. If I were truly made permanent, wouldn't I be worked to death?
And that bastard Rong San, with the Emperor's enthronement being such a major event, why hasn't he hurried back to me yet?"
The attendant grinding ink beside him thought for a moment and tentatively said:
"My lord, is it possible that 'that person' also feels that the new Emperor has too many things to do upon his ascension, which is why he hasn't returned?"
The brush in Feng Qingchen's hand paused. Only when the ink dripped onto the paper, forming a large black dot, did he suddenly shout:
"An Ling!"
"Here."
"I order you, now, immediately, to tie up your conscience-lacking master and bring him to me!
Alive or dead.
If that's not possible, chopping him up and feeding him to the dogs is also acceptable!"
An Ling: ...
The attendant, knowing his lord's old habit had flared up again, signaled to An Ling. The latter nodded understandingly and retreated.
"My lord, His Majesty just sent over the Prime Minister's attire tailor-made for you. Why don't you try it on and move around a bit?"
Feng Qingchen, still furious, curtly replied with two words:
"Not trying!"
"My lord, tomorrow is your first day at court as the Left Prime Minister. To establish prestige among the civil and military officials, you should try on the Prime Minister's attire..."
"Not trying! Not going!
Damn it, finishing these memorials will take until past midnight, and I still need to prepare for the enthronement ceremony. Where would I find the time to listen to their nagging?"
Thus, on the second day of the morning court, both the Left and Right Prime Ministers were absent.
The civil and military officials, forced to bear the new Emperor's low pressure: ...
On the other side.
Under Leng Ningyue's persuasion and encouragement, Lin Qingge decided to seize the opportunity and take up her post at Shuntian Prefecture.
Yan Tinghao and Hua Jinrong expressed their support.
Murong Bai initially refused, but later changed his mind, claiming that seeing Lin Zimo's extreme foolishness and the likelihood that others would not be able to teach him well, he reluctantly agreed to this endeavor.
The case files of Ling Han and Lu Mingxuan, whose death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment, were all taken away by Lin Qingge. She even planned to bring along Xiao Hei, who had gotten fatter while everyone was away.
Zhou Zeli, fortunate enough to receive a letter of introduction from Pavilion Elder Su, planned to follow everyone to the capital and enroll in the best academy, the Hanlin Academy.
Yongning also mentioned that after being away for so long, she missed home and asked Xu Siyun to accompany her back to the capital.
Since everyone else was leaving, Xu Siyun could not stay behind alone and therefore agreed.
In the evening.
The only person who wanted to travel with the group but was bound by circumstances came to Lin Qingge's door and knocked gently.
Off-topic:
Thank you, my dears, for your unwavering support. Hahaha, we are finally entering the 'Capital Arc,' also known as: 'The Grand Reveal!'
Don't worry, we'll reveal them one by one~
Love you all, kisses~